Rising Sun
by BellaMonster
Summary: Dovewing's and Tigerheart's kits are now apprentices, but now they have a prophecy in their paws, and they don't even know what it means. Yet.
1. Prologue

**A/N**: Alrighty! So this was my first fanfic on Rainmist-and-Lilymist (transferred to this account because I felt like a nuisance on her account all the time) You know the drill, anything from the story you recognize from the books obviously isn't mine, if it was I would be rich and I would be living happily in London. And this comes a short time after The Last Hope. Story is based around Bramblekit(paw) and Rainkit(paw) who was previously named after my username on the other account... So yep. I hope you enjoy :) I've done some edits so a little more detail on somethings... And maybe a little less randomness!

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A fluffy, pale grey she-cat with blue eyes pushed through the ferns that had turned to a silver color in the moonlight and padded into an open clearing. On the other side of the clearing there was the silhouette of another cat, his scent wafted toward her. He got to his paws and made his way to her, his features becoming clearer. He was a huge tabby tom with dark brown tabby stripes with a torn ear and warm, welcoming amber eyes. She purred happily at the sight of him.

"You came," he meowed softly as he pressed his muzzle into her cheek.

She gave him a quizzical look. "Why wouldn't I?" she inquired. He shook his head, purring softly. "Tigerheart," she mewed, "I have something to tell you." He held her gaze, waiting for her to continue. "I'm going to have kits," she purred, her tail twitching in joy.

Tigerheart seemed frozen for a moment. "Oh StarClan, that's great!" he meowed, his eyes dancing.

The look faded from his face when he realized that Dovewing had lost the joy in her stature. "What am I going to tell them?" she whispered, her blue eyes clouding with anxiety.

He blinked his eyes in confusion. "What do you mean?" he mewed. "Queens don't have to tell anyone who the father is unless they want to..."

"I know," she mewed cutting him off hurriedly. "But if a kit looks like you..." she trailed off shaking her head, her shoulders sinking. "They'll be suspicious."

"Then they can be suspicious," the tom decided, "they wouldn't be able to tell. There are others that look like me," he promised.

Dovewing didn't look convinced. "I guess," she meowed as she looked behind her anxiously. "I won't be able to come here as often, once I'm in the nursery they'll be watching me like a hawk." She swished her tail at that, obviously not liking the idea.

He sighed and straightened up. "It's to keep you safe. If I could I would, but..." he stopped himself from going on any further. "Who knows?" he inquired tilting his head to the side in question.

"Lionblaze, Jayfeather, Cinderheart, Ivypool, Squirrelflight, Brackenfire, Millie, Graystripe—"

Tigerheart cut her off with a snort of amusement. "—the whole Clan?" he mewed, his amber eyes glowing in amusement.

Doverwing dipped her head slightly. "Yeah," she mewed. "I plan on moving into the nursery soon... A few have suspected that I'm having kits... Some think Bumblestripe's the father," she mumbled amused by the idea.

Tigerheart snorted in laughter, clearly entertained. "That furball?" he mewed, his eyes gleaming in the pale silver moonlight. "You've got to be kidding me!"

She shook her head, her whiskers brushing his. "Whitewing wants it to be him," she offered. "If she found out it was you, she'd have my tail!" She seemed to be entertained with that idea.

He looked over her head in the direction of ThunderClan camp. "You should get going soon," he mewed, "I wouldn't want you to get into trouble for being out, especially now," he added as he pressed his muzzle against her cheek again. "If you can make it tomorrow, I'll be here. If not, it's okay. I understand."

She dipped her head in agreement. "I'll try to see you tomorrow," she promised before she turned to slip back into the ferns leaving Tigerheart standing in the empty clearing. She padded back to camp. To her surprise, she made it back to camp without even being noticed and slipped into her nest in the warriors den without a word from anyone.

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Dovewing gasped in pain a the first kit came. Her body shook with effort and pain as the first kit slipped out. A she-cat. She licked the bundle of fur before she convulsed in pain as another kit slipped out. Another she-cat. She licked the other kit just before a third pain ran through her body. A third kit slipped out. A tiny tom. She licked the tiny kit's fur the wrong way sending heat into his body before placing him beside his two sisters at her belly.

She'd done it all by herself. She had come away from the camp to have her kits. Well, not really. She had gone on a walk with Cinderheart when the kits started coming. The grey she-cat had hurried back to camp for herbs from Jayfeather, but hadn't returned in time for Dovewing's kitting.

She looked at her kits with pride in her blue eyes. Two she-cats and a tiny time. The two she-cats looked almost identical, both were a silvery-grey shade, except one had black tipped ears and the other didn't. "Rainkit and Lilykit," she murmured gently as she named the two identical kits. She studied the tom, he was small, yes, but he was going to be strong, just like his father. The tom matched Tigerheart's pelt almost exactly, except his underbelly turned silver along with his muzzle. "Bramblekit," she whispered softly as she curled her tail protectively around her kits.

Cinderheart came crashing through the undergrowth out of breath and stopped abruptly seeing that Dovewing's kits were at her belly. "Are you alright?" she asked worriedly as she eyed the kits.

Dovewing nodded her head warily, "Only tired," she mewed closing her eyes for a short moment.

Cinderheart made a sound of satisfaction in her throat as her eyes locked with Doverwing's. "Thank goodness I brought Lionblaze with me," she said as she looked over her shoulder as the golden tom stepped out of the crushed undergrowth—no thanks to Cinderheart—and stood beside his mate. "We can help carry them," she mewed looking back at her friend.

The grey she-cat nodded again. She got to her paws leaving her kits mewling on the ground for a moment before she picked up the tom and the other two picked up the she-cats. Lionblaze lead the way back to camp with the kits' scruffs in their jaws.

When the reached camp Lionblaze set Rainkit down. "You should probably let Jayfeather look at them," he suggested, his eyes landing on his brother's den.

Dovewing nodded as she nudged Rainkit toward the den who started to squirm in that direction blindly. She rushed into the medicine cat's den and then returned for her daughter before finally staying put in Jayfeather's den.

"They seem healthy enough," he mewed after he had done a thorough lookover of the kits. "The tom seems a little small." Dovewing nodded in agreement. "They'll live," he decided. "You need rest, go back to the nursery," he mewed, his blind blue eyes flashing sympathetically. "I'll help you take the kits back."

Dovewing picked up Bramblekit by the scruff of his tiny neck again and the other two grey cats picked up her other two kits and carried them to the nursery where they were attacked by questions by Cinderheart's own kits.

"Be quiet," Cinderheart mewed in a hushed voice. "Dovewing is very tired, she deserves some rest." It seemed like forever before Cinderheart's kits finally quieted down and Dovewing finally fell asleep.

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**A/N: **So, what'd you think? I did a little editing here and there to make it better**—**hopefully. Have a nice morning/afternoon/evening folks! :)


	2. Chapter One

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

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"C'mon! Get up Mom!" Bramblekit mewed loudly in Dovewing's ear. Dovewing flicked her ear acknowledging that her son was there, but she didn't move otherwise. It probably wasn't even dawn yet... Her kits had gotten into a habit of being up early. _Too early_.

"Please!" Lilykit mewed joining in on Bramblekit's pleading.

Dovewing sighed as she propped herself up. "What?" she inquired sleepily stifling a yawn.

"We wanna see the camp! And Cinderheart said that we had to ask you first!" Bramblekit mewed excitedly. "_Please_!" he mewed nearly bouncing up and down on his paws.

Dovewing sighed as she looked at her youngest kit. "Fine," she mewed, "you can go, but be careful and stay out of the warriors' ways," she mewed. She nudged her only son out of her nest, which he didn't seem to mind. He hurried out of the nursery eagerly followed by his two older sisters.

"There you are!" Dustkit mewed loudly as Dovewing's kits tumbled out of the nursery. "We didn't think Dovewing let you come!" he mewed as his sister Duskkit padded toward them with an older cat, an apprentice Bramblekit suspected. "This is Amberpaw," Dustkit mewed looking up at the apprentice.

_We're so small compared to her! _Bramblekit thought silently as Amberpaw loomed over them.

"Hi!" the golden-brown she-cat mewed cheerfully to the three youngest kits. She looked friendly enough, at least friendlier than some of the cats in the camp...

"Hi," Rainkit mewed looking at the apprentice with interest. "How long have you been an apprentice?" she asked tilting her head to the side curiously.

Amberpaw puffed out her chest. "Two moons now," the she-cat said proudly.

"We only have to wait a few moons until we're apprentices!" Lilykit boasted loudly almost bouncing up and down on her paws in anticipation.

Amberpaw looked at Bramblekit's older sister in interest. "I can teach you guys how to get into a hunter's crouch," she offered, her whiskers twitching.

"Actually," Dustkit mewed interrupting Amberpaw. "We were going to show them the camp," he meowed giving the golden-brown she-cat a stare, probably hoping that she would take it as a sign to go away.

"Ah, okay, come and get me later if you still want to," she mewed as she turned away from the kits and padded toward the apprentice den without another word.

"C'mon," Duskkit mewed flicking her tail. The pure white she-cat led them toward the apprentice where Amberpaw had disappeared. "This is the apprentice den. We'll be sleeping here in less than a quarter moon," she mewed cheerfully. Bramblekit looked around the den curiously, he saw Amberpaw curled up in her nest and another cat curled up in their nest bear the back edge of the apprentice den. "Let's go, we don't want to wake them," she mewed as she led the younger kits out of the apprentice den with a little bounce to her step. "I'll show you the warriors' den and then the elders' den," she mewed looking over her shoulder quickly to make sure that they were still following her.

Bramblekit, Rainkit and Lilykit followed the older kit almost on her tail. Duskkit led them to a bigger den.

"Don't go in there," the older she-cat mewed warningly. "They don't like kits in there," she murmured. He looked around the den from the outside in awe. The den was huge! At least three times as big as the nursery, if not bigger. "And the last stop! The elders' den!" Duskkit bounced enthusiastically from the warriors' den toward a huge tree stump in the ground close to the fresh-kill pile with her darker pelted brother at her side.

The five kits entered the elders' den peering around the den in curiosity.

"Hello, youngsters," a voice rasped from the far side of the den.

"Spiderleg!" Duskkit mewed happily her white tail twitching in joy.

"Hello, Duskkit," he meowed looking at the five kits standing in the entrance of the den. "What're you up to now? Nothing mischievous I hope?" he inquired, amusement creeping into his voice.

"Nope! I'm showing them around camp," she answered her whiskers twitching in amusement as if she'd never given a thought to getting into trouble.

"Oh?" Spiderleg mewed, his eyes falling on Dovewing's kits. "And how are you three enjoying it?"

"It's great!" Rainkit purred looking at the elder, her two siblings echoing her.

Spiderleg's dull eyes sparkled with laughter at the kits. "Well, I'll leave you to your tour," he mewed dipping his head toward the five kits.

Dustkit dipped his head to the elder and then turned around to face his denmates. "C'mon guys! We're gonna go see Bramblestar!" he mewed as he bounded out of the elders' den. The three youngest kits bounced after him toward the ThunderClan leader's den.

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**A/N: **That's all for today, even though I know there's two more chapters. My poor little fingers can't take anymore typing for the day haha enjoy your day! :)


	3. Chapter Two

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

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Rainkit bounced up and down on her paws as she spoke excitedly to Duskpaw and Dustpaw. Today was her—and Bramblekit's and Lilykit's—apprentice ceremony. She would be in the apprentice den with Duskpaw and Dustpaw and several of the other apprentices tonight. Some time ago, Dovewing had called her into the nursery to be groomed, but she had ignored her mother. She hated it when she had to be groomed.

"Rainkit," Duskpaw meowed, her voice low as her eyes followed Dovewing out of the nursery. "I think you should be going," she mewed making a small gesture toward her mother. "We'll see you later!" the pure white she-cat called as she jumped to her paws and padded away with Dustpaw at her side.

"I thought I told you to come inside a while ago?" Dovewing meowed gently, a little bit of amusement edging at her voice.

"I didn't hear you," Rainkit lied holding her head high as her amber eyes flickered toward the camp entrance for a slight second.

"Don't even think about it, young lady," Dovewing warned when she noticed her daughter's eyes fixed on the camp entrance. She picked Rainkit up by the scruff of her neck and carried her back to the nursery, Rainkit squirming the whole way.

"Put me down!" Rainkit squealed failing her paws as she tried to get free of her mother's grasp.

The grey she-cat set Rainkit down gently in her nest. As soon as the she-kit hit the nest she tried to dash out of the den, but Dovewing picked her back up and set her back down in the mossy nest. "Stop, you're going to look atrocious for the ceremony," Dovewing grumbled as she licked Rainkit's head in-between her ears. Her eyes landed on her two sleeping siblings, their pelts already neatly groomed.

"Do you know who are mentors will be?" Rainkit inquired as she batted her mother's muzzle away from her.

"It's a secret," Dovewing said heaving a sigh. "I think you'll like your mentor," she added. "Wake them, the meeting will begin shortly."

Rainkit nodded as her mother padded out of the nursery. The moment her mother was gone she darted toward her brother and sister and nearly toppled over them. "Get up! The ceremony is soon!" she mewed bouncing up and down on the side of the nest.

Rainkit was barreled over by a flash of brown tabby fur. Bramblekit. He held her down by her shoulders on the dusty ground, even though he was a little smaller than she was. "_Don't_ wake me up like _that_," he growled, his amber eyes gleaming playfully, his whiskers twitching in amusement.

She shoved him off her. "Okay, fine," she huffed as she shook the moss out of her fur. "Lilykit, get _up_, the ceremony is starting soon," she meowed loudly in her sister's ear, who was still sleeping somehow.

Lilykit opened one eye sleepily and raised her head slightly from her paws. "But I wanna sleep," she mumbled stifling a yawn.

"I don't care! Don't you want to be an apprentice?" Rainkit mewed cocking her head to the side in question. After a moment of deciding, she grabbed Lilykit by the scruff of her neck and started to drag her out of her nest.

"Okay! Okay! I'm up," Lilykit mewed as she got to her paws, a look of disapproval gleaming in her eyes. "Sheesh," she muttered as she shook out her fur and trotted after her siblings who were leaving her behind in the nest.

"Duskpaw!" Rainkit mewed as she picked out the older she-cat. The apprentice turned her head and looked at her with a little bit of question in her eyes. "Do you know where Dovewing went?" she inquired.

Duskpaw's eyes scanned the clearing before she finally shook her head. "Maybe she's talking to Bramblestar," she suggested flicking her tail in the direction of Bramblestar's den.

"Maybe," Rainkit agreed as she turned away from the older cats. "C'mon! We're gonna go see Bramblestar!" she mewed as she scampered toward High Ledge with Bramblekit and Lilykit on her heels. She jumped up the side of the ledge and then raced into Bramblestar's den nearly running her mother, Squirrelflight and Bramblestar over.

"Rainkit!" Dovewing mewed in surprise. "What are you doing up here?"

"I got them up!" Rainkit announced fluffing her fur up in excitement.

Bramblestar's whiskers twitched in amusement. "I think it's time for the ceremony," he mewed as the three warriors rose to their paws. Bramblestar led them outside of the den, Squirrelflight leading them down to the hallow. "Let all cats old enough to gather prey gather here, before High Ledge, for a Clan meeting!" he yowled, his voice echoing off the sides of the hallow. Cats poured out of their dens, all of them chattering and sat expectantly in front of the ledge. "We are gathered here tody to name three apprentices," he began. Rainkit's fur was puffed out in excitement as she stared up at Bramblestar. "Come forward," he mewed nodding to the three kits as he jumped down from his perch. "Until she has earned her warrior name, she will be known as Rainpaw," Bramblestar meowed. "Squirrelflight, you are in need of an apprentice, and I'm sure you are ready fora nother," he meowed as looked at the ginger she-cat who was the ThunderClan deputy. "Train her well," he meowed as he turned to Bramblekit as the newly named apprentice touched noses with the deputy. "Until he has earned—" Bramblestar broke off as a yowl filled the air. His amber eyes shot up to to the top of the hallow, finding a dark brown tabby standing at the top.

"Tigerheart?" Dovewing meowed in astonishment, followed by yowls of surprise and anger from the rest of her Clanmates.

"What are you doing here?" Bramblestar demanded, though there was no anger, or even surprise in his voice as he spoke with the tom.

"They're blaming me for impossible things!" he answered, his voice loud. "They've banished me from ShadowClan!"

Gasps filled the hallow. "Why were you banished?" Squirrelflight inquired, Rainkit hiding behind her with her head poked around her flank just enough to see the tabby's head.

"I was told I killed Blackstar," he replied, his voice shook as he spoke.

Several more gasps filled the hallow. "Why would you ever do such a thing?" Dovewing inquired above the clamor of the ThunderClan cats. "He must have had the scent of the killer all over him."

"It did, and somehow it was my scent," he meowed shaking his head. "I have nowhere to go."

"Do you think we take in everyone?" Dustpelt called out angrily.

"No," Tigerheart meowed, nodding respectfully in the direction of Dustpelt, "but I have ThunderClan blood, same as you," he continued. "I think I deserve a chance to stay here."

Bramblestar stared at the former ShadowClan cat thoughtfully as if he was considering the idea. "You will be treated as a visitor until we know the truth of it," he decided.

Tigerheart seemed to relax as he nodded and then jumped down at sat at the edge of the group of cats.

Bramblestar turned his attention back to Bramblekit who was staring at Tigerheart in amazement. "Until he has earned his warrior name, he will be known as Bramblepaw," he meowed. "Lionblaze, you are ready for your second apprentice, and I'm sure you will train him well," Bramblestar went on. Lionblaze stepped foward and touched noses with the new apprentice as Bramblestar found his gaze on Lilykit. "Until she has earned her warrior name, she will be known as Lilypaw," Bramblestar meowed. "I will take Lilypaw as my apprentice," he meowed as he bent down to touch noses with the surprised apprentice.

"Rainpaw! Bramblepaw! Lilypaw!" the Clan cheered. Rainpaw noticed that even Tigerheart was cheering.

"You are _so_ lucky!" Rainpaw mewed as she padded over to her sister.

Lilypaw ducked her head in embarrassment. "Oh, I don't know," she murmured.

"Congratulations!" Dovewing meowed, closely followed by Tigerheart.

Tigerheart seemed to be more excited than the rest of the Clan about them becoming apprentices. "You'll be the best warriors ThunderClan has ever seen," Tigerheart mewed lightheartedly. "The best warriors the _Clans_ have ever seen," he rephrased with his whiskers twitching in amusement. "You may want to make your nests," he suggested.

"You said you have ThunderClan blood?" Rainpaw meowed finally getting the courage to question the big tom.

He nodded in her direction. "My mother, Tawnypelt, is Bramblestar's sister," he meowed. "We stayed here for a while—my sister, brother, mother and me—while Sol was in ShadowClan, turning Blackstar against StarClan," Tigerheart mewed as Rainpaw's eyes widened. "Don't worry," he mewed, laughter dancing in his eyes, "Blackstar was back to his old self when that lousy excuse for a cat left the Clans." He looked over to Squirrelflight and caught her eye, the deputy padded toward them. "Hold on, he mewed to Dovewing and the newly named apprentices. He pulled Squirrelfight off to the side, she nodded a couple times and they spoke a couple words that Rainpaw couldn't catch before Tigerheart returned. "A tour of ThunderClan camp," he announced. "You get to lead," he mewed looking at Dovewing. "You know it better than I do," he added when she gave him an uncomfortable look. "Unless you'd rather the _ShadowClan _cat lead the _ThunderClan_ territory tour?" Tigerheart asked, his whiskers twitching in amusement at Dovewing.

Their mother took it as a challenge. "I'll lead," she mewed finally. "And you'll follow _every_ order I say," she mewed with a glint of laughter in her pale blue eyes

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**A/N: **That's all for today! I'm sorry I haven't updated lately. School's finished (for the summer) so I'll have the summer to write more. Hope you guys enjoyed :) Don't forget to review my friends!


	4. Chapter Three

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

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Bramblepaw followed his mother and Tigerheart out of camp with Rainpaw at his side and Lilypaw on his heels. The former-ShadowClan tom seemed like he had something to say, but there was a tenseness about his mother that seemed to keep the tom from speaking. It bothered Bramblepaw knowing that there was something he wasn't saying.

"Grumpy furball," Rainpaw mewed cheerfully as she shoved her shoulder into his side playfully. He shoved her back with a scowl. "I'm not the one scowling at Dovewing and Tigerheart," she mewed, her whiskers twitching in amusement. She darted ahead of him, leaving him to dash after her running past the two warriors.

"Don't go too far ahead!" Tigerheart called after them.

Bramblepaw rolled his eyes and then barreled into Rainpaw who'd stopped at the edge of the lake. "Sorry," he mewed as he stepped back to give his sister space to get back to her paws. He looked out at the water, his dark tabby fur ruffling in the slight breeze that came off the lake. Rainpaw shoved him forward, forcing him down the side of the banks and into the water. He landed in shallow water and then rolled to his paws a growl rumbling in his throat as he climbed back to the banks of the lake.

The moment he was out of the water, he shook his pelt out and then pinned Rainpaw to the ground. Rainpaw certainly hadn't noticed that he'd gotten out of the lake and lay on the ground staring up at him in surprise. "Gotcha," he mewed playfully. "I'm not a RiverClan cat, and I'm never going to be. Don't put me in the water, or I'll put _you_ in the water, like _this_." That was never anything he would do, but it was a good scare tactic. Only if Rainpaw believed it though.

Tigerheart and Dovewing stood farther up the bank staring at the two apprentices. "What are you doing?" Dovewing meowed giving her two kits a questioning look.

"Playing," Rainpaw managed as she looked back at her mother. She had to be straining her neck looking at the warriors like that.

"You're soaking wet!" their mother mewed, her eyes locked on Bramblepaw.

"She pushed me into the lake," he mewed, shrugging his shoulders loosing his grip on his sister a little bit.

Tigerheart shook his head like he was disappointed, but his eyes said otherwise, he just looked amused. "Get up," he mewed. "We've got quite a way to go, and we don't want you catching something or being tired before we finish it all."

The dark tom allowed his sister to get to her paws but pushed her to the side when she was balanced on her paws again. She only scowled at him before following her kin and Tigerheart back into the ThunderClan trees.

"That was so awesome!" Lilypaw mewed enthusiastically.

They had finally returned to camp, and though the tour was interesting, Lilypaw seemed to be only one who was actually excited about the tour. They were laying in front of the apprentice den watching as the other cats of ThunderClan shared tongues.

Bramblepaw only rolled his eyes. "It wasn't that exciting," he muttered. "Maybe for Dovewing and Tigerheart. Must have been exciting mooning over each other the whole time." He shook his head as he focused his eyes on the ground in front of him.

Rainpaw nudged him with an extended grey paw. "They're _right_ there," she mumbled. "Do you want them to hear you?" she inquired.

"I don't care," he muttered looking up at his sister. "They're not even attempting to hide it. Like from _anyone_."

"Plus," Lilypaw started as she licked her paw delicately, "he's not our father, why should we care?"

Rainpaw's gaze swiveled to her sister. "We don't know that," she mewed. "We don't know who our father is, for all we know, he _could_ be."

"That means we're part ShadowClan," Bramblepaw muttered in disgust. "Yuck."

"But we don't know that," Lilypaw argued as she set her semi-cleaned paw down on the ground.

"You wanna find out? You're gonna have to either wait or you're gonna have to ask," Rainpaw mewed. "And I am _not_ asking." She sounded slightly amused at the idea, but she was dead serious. She was right, the only way of finding out for sure was to wait or to ask. And asking wasn't the greatest idea.

Bramblepaw sighed as he looked away from his sisters. "I'm going to sleep. It's late, and we're probably going to be training tomorrow," he murmured as he got to his paws and then padded into the apprentice den. He curled up in his nest by the back of the den and closed his eyes.

"Hello, little one," a voice murmured darkly in his dream. A black cat stood in front of Bramblepaw.

Bramblepaw blinked his eyes in confusion. He knew this was a dream, but he didn't want to be awake for a dream. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"My name is not important," the tom meowed flicking his tail, dismissing the subject. "There are traitors among you," he stated, his amber eyes cold and hard. "Tigerheart betrayed his Clan, and he killed Blackstar."

Bramblepaw stared at the bigger tom. "You don't seriously believe that, do you?" Bramblepaw asked, slightly irritated that Tigerheart was being singled out for something that hadn't been proven yet.

"He did it. There was proof all around Blackstar. His fur, his scent, and there were scratches from only moves he knows," the black cat meowed, his voice smooth, persuasive. "ShadowClan banished him from the Clan because of that. ThunderClan cats are too soft," he growled, his amber eyes flickering coldly.

"We are not!" Bramblepaw insisted, his eyes flickering in unease. What kind of cat would outright insult a Clan? "We're the bravest and toughest Clan there is!"

The tom rolled his amber eyes. "That Clan has been ruined, there is nothing left of ThunderClan," he meowed. "Firestar destroyed your Clan the moment he set paw in that camp. He allowed kittypets, rogues and loners to join," he meowed in disgust. "The remains of ThunderClan will fall into chaos, and there's no way to stop it from happening," the tom mewed.

"There has to be a way," Bramblepaw meowed, his tabby tail lashing back and forth as he stared at the bigger tom menacingly.

The tom purred as if he had been waiting for him to say that. "I can train you, and you will be the best warrior ThunderClan has ever seen. Only _then_ will you be able to stop what is coming."

Bramblepaw's amber eyes widened in surprise. "Train me? I've already got a mentor."

"Lionblaze," the black meowed, his voice harsh. "I know. I will train you better than he will ever be able to."

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**A/N: **That's all for today! I'm sorry I haven't updated lately. I'm not telling you who the black kitty is (to be honest, I totally forgot, but I remember now... Oops!) and just so you know, Bramblepaw isn't necessarily _bad_, he's easily mislead. Him and Rainpaw are supposed to be closer, Lilypaw... Well, she's a little slow haha but she's so adorable at times. Anyways, review my friends! I will try to update sooner!


	5. Chapter Four

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

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Rainpaw woke up to a paw being jabbed in her side. She stifled a yawn as she looked up to see her younger sister standing over her. "C'mon, we're gonna be late for training if you lay around sleeping all day," she mewed, her blue eyes staring down at her sister in amusement.

Rainpaw heaved a sigh as she got to her paws and stretched. "How come you're awake before me?" she inquired curiously, as she ran a paw over her ear. It was unusual that her younger sister was awake before her, but she decided it was probably because she was excited for training.

"Because _Bramblepaw_ kicked me about an hour ago, twitching in his sleep," she muttered throwing her brother an incredulous look before shaking her head. "I've been up, Jayfeather made me change the elder's bedding already."

The grey she-cat looked at her little brother nervously. It wasn't like him to twitch in his sleep, even with the six moons in the nursery; she had never known him to twitch. Maybe he had just had a really exciting dream. "Should we wake him up too?" she inquired, amber eyes flickering to her sister.

She shook her head. "Nope, Squirrelflight said to let him sleep, Lionblaze is out on dawn patrol," she replied flicking a grey paw. "Now c'mon before Bramblestar and Squirrelflight die while waiting for us."

Rainpaw snorted in amusement as she followed her sister out of the apprentice den and into the clearing, where Squirrelflight and Bramblestar were waiting. She wasn't sure why Lilypaw was so eager to start training, as far as Rainpaw was concerned, their mentors were busy sharing tongues.

"Ready to go?" Squirrelflight inquired as she rose to her paws noticing the two apprentices approaching them. When she received two nods, she headed for the thorn tunnel with Bramblestar at her side and the two apprentices on her heels.

Rainpaw kept her eyes on the treetops as they headed for the training clearing, her eyes darting from branch to branch trying to see if there was prey lurking around. To her disappointment, there was no prey to be seen. "What are we gonna learn today?" she mewed sitting down in the sandy clearing, her amber eyes darting back and forth between Bramblestar and Squirrelflight.

"We're going to see those hunter's crouches of yours, we'll see how well Dustpaw and Duskpaw trained you," Bramblestar started, his whiskers twitching in amusement. "If they're decent enough we'll see about basic battle skills."

Lilypaw brightened at that and then instantly dropped into a semi-decent hunter's crouch. "Is this good enough?" she inquired, her eyes darted to the two mentors in front of her.

Rainpaw poked her in the side causing her grey sister to wobble and nearly fall. "Hm, you're not balanced," she assessed, amusement creeping into her voice. "And your rump is up in the air," she said repeating what Amberpaw had said moons ago about Lilypaw's hunter's crouch.

Bramblestar nodded in agreement. "You might want to keep your tail off of the ground as well," he added thoughtfully. "Prey will hear you coming from the other side of the territory if you're dragging your tail," he rumbled in laughter. "Now, let's see yours, Rainpaw," he meowed, his amber eyes falling on the older apprentice.

Rainpaw dropped into her hunter's crouch, which really wasn't much better than Lilypaw's, if anything it was worse. She felt her stomach flip in embarrassment as she looked at her mentor, who was only looking back at her with laughter in her green eyes. "I think the same can apply to you, Rainpaw," she mewed padding toward her. She placed a paw in the middle of her back. "You're not low enough to the ground, and I bet if I poked you in the side you'd topple over," she mewed.

The grey she-cat sighed knowing that Squirrelflight was right. "Don't worry," Squirrelflight amended. "You'll learn, it takes time," she promised. She took a step back and looked over Rainpaw to Lilypaw who was trying to perfect her hunter's crouch. "Better," she praised. "But, balance your weight between your paws more evenly. You can't just walk softly on your front paws and heavily on your back ones."

_I can try_, Rainpaw thought to herself quietly as she leaned forward a little more and lowered herself even further to the ground. "Is this better?" she inquired, her voice strained as she tried to look to her side to see Squirrelflight.

The ginger she-cat poked her in the side, making her wobble slightly, but not nearly as much as Lilypaw had when Rainpaw poked her in the side. "A little," Squirrelflight purred. "You're learning," she mewed. "Let's see you stalk something," she mewed, her eyes wandering off as she tried to decide what she should stalk. "Lilypaw, go to the other side of the clearing. You can change places when you're done."

Lilypaw nodded as she got to her paws and bounced to the other side of the clearing and then pretended not to notice that any of them were there anymore. "Alright, now I want you to sneak up on her and bounce on her, claws _sheathed_," Squirrelflight mewed as she backed away from her apprentice. "Go on."

Rainpaw swallowed nervously as she crept toward her sister, keeping her pawsteps as quiet as she could. She paused a couple times when Lilypaw's ears swiveled in her direction and then continued on until she was almost right behind her. She pounced her sister's back, making the younger she-cat squeak in mock-surprise.

"Good job," Bramblestar called from the other side of the clearing. "You're turn Lilypaw!"

Rainpaw allowed her sister to get to her paws and watched as her sister leapt away toward the other end of the clearing. She turned around toward the edge of the clearing, her back to her sister. She found it unnerving to stand there waiting for her sister to pounce on her, even though she could hear the gentle thuds of her sister stepping overcautiously on the ground behind her. This had never been something Rainpaw was good at, she usually turned around at the last second and caught her stalker by surprise, but she knew she couldn't do that. At least, she couldn't this time.

Finally, Lilypaw leapt on her, pinning her to the ground. Lilypaw let her to her paws with a purr. "Good job, you've learned how to restrain yourself," she mewed, her eyes dancing with laughter.

Rainpaw made a face as she cuffed her sister's ear playfully.

"Alright," Bramblestar said from behind them as he neared them. "Basic training moves." Lilypaw sat up straight, her ears perked up in attention. Had they not been with their mentors, Rainpaw would have teased her. "Front paw blows," he started, his eyes landed on Squirrelflight, "is basically hitting your opponent in the head with your paw, claws sheathed."

"Can you do it with your claws unsheathed?" Rainpaw inquired fidgeting on her hind legs.

Bramblestar seemed to consider it. "If you hit them hard enough in the head, I'm not sure it will make much difference," he decided shrugging his shoulders. "But if you're in battle, you may not be thinking about that." He tapped his paw on the top of Squirrelflight's head. "Exactly like that, but in a fight, you'll put more power behind it."

Lilypaw nodded eagerly as she sucked in the information. "Can we try?" she mewed, her head tilted to the side slightly in question.

Bramblestar dipped his head, and only a moment later, Lilypaw whacked Rainpaw in the head. "Ow," Rainpaw muttered throwing a glare at her sister. "I'm not fighting you! Don't hit so hard!" Rainpaw snapped.

Lilypaw drew her paw back as her eyes fixed on the ground in front of her. "Sorry," she muttered, though she didn't sound very sorry to her.

* * *

They spent the remainder of the day learning simple battle moves before heading back to the hallow while catching prey for the fresh-kill pile. The camp seemed deserted when they arrived back, probably because half of the Clan was gone on hunting patrols and boundary patrols. Bramblepaw was sitting outside the apprentice den, a tired look in his eyes, when Rainpaw came lumbering over to him with a squirrel in her jaws.

"Hard training day?" she inquired as she set the squirrel down in front of him.

Bramblepaw nodded as he sniffed the squirrel. "We sharing?" he mewed looking up at her.

"Yep," she replied as she plopped down beside her brother. "So what'd you do?" she inquired curiously. Lilypaw and Rainpaw weren't tired from doing all they had done, so she wasn't quite sure why her little brother was so tired.

"Basic stuff," he mewed through a mouthful of squirrel. "I got to climb up a tree," he added, pride shining through his tired gaze.

As kits, they had tried to climb trees, but Bramblepaw had always been scared of climbing. She wasn't sure what it was that made him scared, but she believed it was the heights that terrified him so much. To hear that he actually climbed a tree and to be proud of it made her happy. It meant that he was overcoming a fear.

"Sounds fun," she mewed through a yawn. "We learned basic battle moves," she meowed as she took a bite of the squirrel. "No trees though."

Bramblepaw beamed at her. "You'll get to climb a tree later," he promised as he got to his paws. "I'm going to sleep. Wanna see if we can go on the hunting patrol in the morning?" he mewed over his shoulder.

Rainpaw nodded as she watched her brother disappear into the den. Hunting with her brother would be nice. It would be their first time hunting together, and it meant that they would both be learning something. She finished off the squirrel before getting to her paws and heading for the warriors den.

* * *

**A/N: **Ooh, it wasn't all for today haha you lucky duckies. Hope you enjoy this, I loved writing this. And Bramblepaw has a special place in my heart. I love him dearly haha anyways, don't forget to review!


	6. Chapter Five

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

**EmberskyofShadowclan**: Hehe yep I was a busy bee today, because guess what... You just got another chapter :D

* * *

Lilypaw yawned, raising her head slightly as Rainpaw padded into the den. She wasn't sure where exactly her sister had gone, but she didn't want to ask either. Rainpaw could get snappy sometimes, especially with lack of sleep. Lilypaw curled up into a ball with her tail brushing her nose before she finally fell asleep.

"Hello, little one," murmured a sweet voice that made Lilypaw's blue eyes open and look around anxiously. "You're safe here, do not worry," the sweet voice continued.

Lilypaw let out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding. "Where are you?" she inquired, her blue eyes darting around as she tried to find the cat that had spoken to her.

"I am here," mewed the sweet voice from behind her. Lilypaw whirled around to see a beautiful tortoiseshell she-cat with warm amber eyes. "I am Spottedleaf," she mewed staring at the smaller cat. "And you are Lilypaw."

Lilypaw nodded slowly, her eyes fixed on the she-cat. "Why am I here?" she meowed. "I'm supposed to be sleeping…"

"And you are," Spottedleaf reassured as she padded forward. "You're asleep in your nest, but you're talking with me in StarClan. I've come to speak with you," she started. "Here, walk with me," she mewed as she walked past Lilypaw.

Lilypaw scampered after the bigger, much more graceful she-cat with a stumped look across her face. "Why would a cat from StarClan want to talk to me? I thought you only talked to the medicine cats and leaders?"

Spottedleaf's amber eyes rested on her for a moment before falling back on the horizon in front of them. "We can choose who to talk to if we wish to; there are some cats that aren't medicine cats or leaders that we speak to." They continued on, walking through the green grass covered in morning dew. "But I want to talk to you," she mewed. "I want to know how you think your apprenticeship is going."

Lilypaw stared at her in confusion. "Can't you see how it's going from… Up here?" she inquired.

Spottedleaf nodded. "Yes, of course we can see how you train, but we can't read your thoughts. Your thoughts are solely yours and yours alone, we don't read your minds," Spottedleaf replied, her tone warm, instead of the annoyance that Lilypaw expected.

"I… I like it a lot," Lilypaw started. "I mean, it's only been a day… And I've not really done much. Tigerheart and Dovewing showed us the territory—"

"Ah, yes, I forgot about the little tom," Spottedleaf murmured shaking her head pausing in the green grass with her forepaw drawn up as if she was pinpointing something before she finally sat down and curled her tail tightly around her paws. "He tells the truth, if you're wondering. He didn't kill Blackstar. _That_ was someone else," she muttered, her tone going sour. She shook her head. "No, but today, while you were training with your sister, did you enjoy it?"

Lilypaw nodded. "Of course, I loved it!" she mewed, her face screwed up in confusion. "Why wouldn't I? I love training. So far, it's the only thing that I've done well. Rainpaw… She tries to help me, but she just gives up."

Spottedleaf's amber eyes filled with sympathy. "You're not a failure," she promised. "Learning takes time, and everyone learns at a different rate. Look at your brother for instance," she mewed, a vision flashing before her eyes of Bramblepaw scaling up the side of a tree trunk, his amber eyes glowing in determination. "It's taken him moons to get over his fear of heights, and now he's using it to his own advantages. You can do the same. I can offer you training, though not from myself," she added with amusement.

"Why can't you train me?" Lilypaw inquired, her head tilted to the side in question. Did the she-cat not _want_ to train her?

"I'm a medicine cat," Spottedleaf mewed gently. "I don't know the moves that you could learn. Though, there is a cat that I know you could learn from," she mewed, her amber eyes lighting up.

"Oh, really?" Lilypaw said, staring at the former medicine cat in amazement. "I—I don't understand, why do I need the extra training?" she inquired.

Spottedleaf's eyes darkened and then she shook her head. "It's nothing for you to worry about," she insisted. "Would you like to meet the cat who is to mentor you?" she mewed as she got to her paws.

_Nothing to worry about? _Lilypaw thought to herself as she got to her paws as well. She figured she had no choice but to follow Spottedleaf. "I would love to," she purred as she followed Spottedleaf down the side of a rocky slop that lead to a small pool of water.

"She will test your limits," Spottedleaf warned. "But she is everything you will need in order to succeed." Lilypaw nodded as they came to a halt at the banks of the lapping water. "Yellowfang, come out," Spottedleaf mewed patiently.

Lilypaw thought back to the tales that the elders used to tell her. The name _Yellowfang _was familiar to her. "Wait. Isn't she… a medicine cat too?" Lilypaw mewed.

"I was a warrior before I was a medicine cat," the she-cat mewed as she stepped out of the undergrowth, a look of amusement dancing in her orange eyes. "And trust me, a warrior never forgets. I can teach you, little one, but you're going to have to put up with me, just as I'm going to have to put up with you."

Lilypaw held her gaze evenly. "I can do that."

"I like this one already," Yellowfang remarked.

* * *

**A/N: **Lilypaw! I can tell you, I've got a new found respect for this little kitty. She gets to put up with Yellowfang (my most favorite medicine cat). And I think Lilypaw might be able to snap right back. Snapping is more of Rainpaw's thing though. Who knows? Hehe anyways, hope you liked! Don't forget to review!


	7. Chapter Six

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

**EmberskyofShadowclan**: I've really had nothing to do over the summer... (Well, I'm supposed to be writing my book, I can't think of anything...) so it's gotten lots of chapters hehe

* * *

"Bramblepaw, c'mon we're on a hunting patrol."

Bramblepaw blinked open his eyes to see a fluffy grey figure standing a whisker-length away from his nose. "Oh yeah," he murmured sleepily as he pressed a paw to his nose, "Forgot. Sorry," he mumbled apologetically as he got to his paws and stood up before his sister took off, leaving him standing groggily in the apprentice den.

His night had not been so restful. The black cat, who had _still_ not told him his name, had been training him. And the training wasn't friendly either. His legs and flanks were sore from falling to the dry ground and from being whacked so many times. Bramblepaw was beginning to wish he could just get a night of sleep. _Without_ dreams from the cat.

He pushed his way out of the den and found the rest of the hunting patrol waiting at the tunnel. Rainpaw seemed to be the only one who was watching him; the others were busily sharing tongues as if they had forgotten what they were doing.

"Ready, sleepy furball?" teased Seedpaw, one of the eldest apprentices in ThunderClan at the time. Bramblepaw tried to make a face, but out of exhaustion only nodded. As they filed out of the camp, Seedpaw fell back with Bramblepaw, a curious look in her amber eyes. "You look tired," she mewed.

Bramblepaw found himself looking up at the treetops, not able to make eye contact with her. "Yeah, bad dreams," he muttered with a sigh.

"Did you go to Jayfeather to see if he's got anything for it?" she inquired, her voice hushed as if she had just picked up the scent of prey. Bramblepaw nodded and was about to say something when she touched him lightly on the flank with her tail, silencing him. "Mouse," she murmured quietly before creeping away, leaving the rest of the patrol on her hunt.

She came back a moment later carrying a large mouse. "Did you see Jayfeather? Or tell Rainpaw?" she asked as they continued on their way, slowly putting tail-lengths between them and the rest of the patrol.

"I went to Jayfeather," Bramblepaw lied, wishing he wasn't. Jayfeather would wonder about his soreness as well, he wasn't exactly sure how he would tell the medicine cat that he had been training with another cat in his dreams, and it wasn't Lionblaze. "I didn't tell Rainpaw. I don't want her to worry."

The ginger she-cat's whiskers twitched in amusement. "Your sister worries a lot," she admitted, pausing to set down the mouse and taste the air. "Mmm, I think I hear a finch," she said, her voice hushed, gesturing to the left, where Bramblepaw supposed the sound of the prey was coming from. "You catch it," she mewed.

He gave her a grateful look before creeping into the low undergrowth nearly, his silver belly almost grazing the ground. After a few moments, he finally picked out the scent of the finch that Seedpaw had determined was nearby. Thankfully, it was on the ground and not up a tree.

He paused several feet from it, thinking it had sensed him, but when it when back to pecking at the ground for food he leapt forward catching it in his paws before nipping its neck. He came back through the undergrowth carrying the finch. "Caught it," he managed to say.

"Good hunter for being an apprentice for two days," Seedpaw praised, her amber eyes glinting. "C'mon let's go find Rainpaw. She wanted you on the patrol, she obviously wanted to hunt with you," she mewed. "It'll help with your tracking skills," she added.

_My tracking skills are already good_, he thought to himself. As kits, he had usually been the one left behind and he had to find his siblings. He accomplished that by scenting his siblings and following their scents, sometimes messing up and ending up on the total opposite side of the hallow, but most of the time actually finding them. That at least made up for his fear of heights. But he followed Seedpaw anyways, keeping an eye out for grey fur.

Somehow, his sense of smell had decided to skip over the scent of his sister, and she nearly barreled him over chasing a squirrel. She let him up with a huff. "Almost had the squirrel," she sighed shaking her head. "See you caught a finch," she mewed, her amber eyes fixed on the tiny bird.

"Seedpaw found it," he mewed, his eyes darting elsewhere. Seedpaw could have _easily_ caught the finch, but she had let him catch it instead. He knew that, and it made him feel embarrassed a little that she had scented it first. "Let's see if we can find that squirrel," he offered before turning to the tree had had just rounded and setting the finch in the roots. "You want to climb the tree?" he inquired, his amber eyes returning to his sister.

She shook her head. "Nope, I wanna see you climb," she mewed brightly. "I'll stay down here if it comes down from the tree," she mewed as she looked up at the tree branches above their heads. "Seedpaw can go up with you," she added, as the older apprentice slipped through the undergrowth beside Bramblepaw.

The ginger apprentice dipped her head. "Good idea," she mewed, her eyes darting from tree to tree. "Hm. We'll go up separate trees so we can corner it," she decided before she raced for the nearest tree and started scaling it.

He threw one last worried look at Rainpaw before he started up the side of the tree that the squirrel had gone up, keeping as quiet as he could as he pulled himself to the first branch. He sighed when he looked back down; maybe he hadn't quite overcome his fear of heights yet. With a look of determination, he pushed forward and continued up the tree to the next branch before following the branch silently. The squirrel was nibbling on a nut at the end of the branch.

Bramblepaw could see Seedpaw's ginger pelt from his branch, and watched as she darted forward to where the branches crossed, scaring the squirrel. The prey came scampering toward him in terror before realizing that he was there waiting. He caught it cleanly and then made his way to the trunk of the tree.

He wasn't sure how, but he made it down from the tree safely without a single remark from Rainpaw. "You've gotten better!" she beamed once he was safely down from the tree. "Soon you'll be running in the treetops and I'll be down here in awe."

Bramblepaw shook his head. "Uh huh," he mumbled through the fur of the squirrel. "Here, you should have caught it," he mewed as he set it down in front of his sister. "I gotta carry back my finch anyways."

Rainpaw gave him a suspicious look before she picked up the squirrel in her jaws. "This way," she mewed, or that's what he thought she said. She flicked her tail in the direction she was already heading in. Seedpaw was scampering after her carrying her mouse. Bramblepaw had to hurry back to the tree to pick up his finch and dash after the two she-cats to keep up with them.

"Lionblaze should have seen him climb that tree!" Rainpaw boasted after they found the rest of their patrol that consisted of Squirrelflight, Berrynose, and Leafpool. "He would be really proud of him."

The three warriors' eyes fell on Bramblepaw and felt overwhelmed. Sure, he was learning to climb trees, but Rainpaw didn't need to announce it to the whole forest. "A natural tree-climber?" Berrynose inquired, sounding slightly amused. "Aren't you scared of heights?"

"Not anymore, I guess," Bramblepaw mumbled. "We're all good at something, right?" he mewed.

"Not Berrynose," the deputy mewed, green eyes dancing with amusement, "he's pretty un-decent at everything." Berrynose huffed at that. "Anyways, we need to get back to camp. They'll be wondering if we've all been eaten by foxes."

* * *

It was nearing sunhigh when they arrived back at the camp, and the moment that their prey was placed on the freshkill-pile it was raided by Blossomfall's kits, Snowkit, Icekit and Frostkit. The little kits were almost three moons old and nearly as big as he was which they seemed to think was amusing. But he was usually alright with them, they were fun to be around and completely random at times.

"Hey! Make sure you leave some for the elders!" Seedpaw teased watching the kits scamper away with their squirrel.

"But we're _hungry_," Icekit mewed pointedly as she shot the ginger apprentice a murderous glare which looked adorable on the tiny cat.

"We're _all_ hungry," Seedpaw muttered rolling her eyes at the kit's stubbornness. "I'm going to the training clearing, I'll see you two later," Seedpaw mewed to Rainpaw and Bramblepaw before disappearing through the thorn tunnel.

"Lilypaw said you were twitching in your sleep, bad dreams?" Rainpaw mewed, her eyes locked on the three kits wrestling over the squirrel by the nursery entrance.

Bramblepaw sighed. "Bad dreams," he agreed, nodding. He was almost sure she had noticed the lie, but she said nothing. "Don't worry, I checked in with Jayfeather about it already, he said we all have bad dreams sometimes," he mewed shrugging his shoulders. "Nothing I can't deal with. Wanna wrestle some kits?" he offered, whiskers twitching in amusement watching as Frostkit toppled over his sisters.

Rainpaw nodded, eyes glinting on the wrestling kits.

* * *

**A/N: **Seedpaw was entertaining (mainly because I don't think there was really anything about her in the actual series) to write. And Blossomfall's kits. They'll be more of them, don't you worry. They're my amusement hehe hope you enjoyed (there might be more up later, depends on if the computer feels like not crashing) don't forget to review! :D


	8. Chapter Seven

**A/N: **Just a reminder! I don't own any of this... If I did I would be quite rich and I probably wouldn't write on here haha

* * *

Lilypaw reared back on her hind legs and then collapsed into a small bundle of grey fur, unable to keep herself balanced. She heaved a sigh as her eyes skirted Yellowfang, who she assumed was shaking her head in frustration. "Let me try again," Lilypaw mewed as she climbed back to her paws.

"That's the spirit," Yellowfang meowed, frustration and amusement mixing in her voice.

Lilypaw knew that the former ThunderClan medicine cat had expected more from her. She was a strong apprentice, and she had a lot more practice with her warrior training than all the other apprentices as far as she knew. She reared back on her hind legs again and then lunged forward as if to attack an invisible enemy. Before she was even balanced on her paws again, she knew Yellowfang was making her way toward her.

"Good job," Yellowfang praised, her orange eyes meeting Lilypaw's blue eyes for a moment. "You're learning well."

Lilypaw tilted her head to the side. "What's this for?" she inquired curiously. She had asked before, that same night she had been taken by Spottedleaf to Yellowfang and never gotten a direct response. Now, almost half a moon later, she had assumed that the medicine cats would tell her. _Maybe_.

To her disappointment, Yellowfang only shook her head. "You'll see one day," she promised, her eyes darkening. "ThunderClan has always had great warriors, and it is a pleasure to help make those warriors become great. Even if they're stubborn." Yellowfang's eyes glowed at that. "Is being a great warrior not enough for you?"

"No!" Lilypaw mewed. "It's enough! I just wanted to know…" she mewed trailing off as her eyes found something else more interesting to fix on.

"And you will," Spottedleaf murmured from her side. "All in good time," she mewed as she sat down beside Yellowfang. "I need you to tell me, have you noticed anything… Odd among the other apprentices?"

"Odd?" Lilypaw echoed, eyes clouding with confusion.

"Sleepiness, unexplained wounds…?" the tortoiseshell she-cat explained.

Lilypaw continued to stare at them in confusion. "I—No. I don't think so, why?" she mewed.

Both of the former medicine cats shook their heads. "You'll know soon, Lilypaw, as soon as we know," she promised. "You may want to go, the patrol for the Gathering is leaving soon."

Lilypaw's eyes brightened at that. "I'll see you soon," she promised, dipping her head respectfully to the two cats before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes.

* * *

Lilypaw opened her eyes to see cats hustling about, eager for the Gathering patrol to leave. This would be her first Gathering, and yet, somehow she had managed to forget about it completely.

"Hey, sleepy furball," meowed the familiar voice of her brother, Bramblepaw as he padded toward her. "Trying to sleep through the Gathering?" he mewed in amusement.

She shuffled to her feet and scowled at him. "No," she mewed as she made another face in his direction. "I'm just tired, and excited. I wanted to catch some sleep before we left."

Bramblepaw nodded in agreement. "I could have used some sleep too," he sighed, his tiredness weaving its way through his voice. "Too late now," he mewed, now sounding a little more cheerful. "Better wake up fast, Bramblestar's about ready to leave," he added as he threw a look over his shoulder. "Or I can drag you," he mewed, his amber eyes gleaming mischievously.

Lilypaw straightened up at that. "No way!" she mewed. "I can carry myself," she mewed and then she pushed past him. "Let's go," she meowed. "Don't wanna be left behind, do we?" she inquired.

Beside her, she felt Bramblepaw heave a sigh. "Nope," he mewed.

The trek to the island was further than Lilypaw thought, but not further than her paws could carry her. Just as they reached the tree-bridge ShadowClan was settling themselves in across the swampy water. The WindClan patrol had merged with ThunderClan's as they made their way around the lakeside. The island was beautiful with the moonlight shining down on it. It made Lilypaw stare in awe, and she almost ended up in the water, until Rainpaw had snapped at her to pay attention.

"So many cats," Lilypaw whispered in excitement as she sat down beside Bramblepaw.

"Yeah, and most of them are bigger than you," Bramblepaw teased flicking his tail across her pelt. "Maybe we should talk with some of the apprentices?" he mewed as he looked in the direction of a large group of apprentices.

Lilypaw snorted in amusement. "Rainpaw's already there. Picking out which one to eat tomorrow morning, no doubt," she mewed following Bramblepaw's amber gaze to the large group of apprentices on the other side of the clearing in front of the huge tree that she supposed the leaders sat on. "I guess," she mewed at last as she clambered back to her paws. "C'mon, slow poke," she mewed her tail twitching.

As soon as Bramblepaw was to his paws, they made their way toward the group of apprentices. They sat down on the edge of the group just as a grey she-cat finished telling a story about chasing a fox clear to the edge of Clan territory.

"We all that's not true, Dewpaw," another she-cat who smelled the same as her, ShadowClan Lilypaw figured out, mewed. "_I_ was there. You just sat there like a frightened mouse while the warriors chased it!"

Dewpaw, the grey apprentice who had told the story scowled at her Clanmate. "Well it makes a good story," she pointed out.

"You know what makes a better story?" It was Rainpaw. _Oh great, _Lilypaw thought, _here goes the stories of falling out of trees._ "Tree-climbing," she announced. The whole group stared at her, waiting for the story. Lilypaw groaned as she rolled her eyes. "Well, it started like this…"

Lilypaw wasn't sure how she survived Rainpaw's awful recollection of their tree-climbing adventures, but she managed to. She hated the stories; they normally ended with her clumsily falling off branches and landing on Bramblepaw.

A silencing yowl came shortly after Rainpaw finished her story, and made Lilypaw nearly jump a fox-length in the air. "Beginning of the Gathering," came the soft mew of Seedpaw from beside her. "Just pay attention."

Lilypaw nodded as she looked up to the giant tree finding Bramblestar, Mistystar, Onestar, and the newly named Rowanstar sitting on branches. She was almost sure that Rowanstar was going to kill Bramblestar with the look he kept giving him until finally Bramblestar stood up.

"All is well in ThunderClan, and we have three newly named apprentices, Rainpaw, Lilypaw and Bramblepaw!" he meowed, his voice ringing out clearly. The island filled with cheers from all Clans, though it seemed ShadowClan was quieter than the rest. Bramblestar sat back on his branch and looked expectantly toward Rowanstar, who was sitting impatiently on his branch.

"Blackstar has gone to StarClan," he announced, his voice cracked as he spoke. Lilypaw almost felt bad for the leader until she remembered they had blamed Tigerheart for his death. "But all is well in ShadowClan otherwise. My new deputy is Tawnypelt."

There was a roar of approval and congratulation for Tawnypelt being named the new deputy of ShadowClan before Rowanstar sat back and allowed Onestar to speak. "We've had issues with the farm dogs, but nothing too serious that we can't handle," Onestar mewed. "We're ready to take on those mangy dogs," he meowed, his eyes glittering in determination as the cats from WindClan puffed their chests out in pride.

"We fare well in RiverClan, the Twolegs seem to keep their distance from the camp, and the fish are plentiful," she reported, her eyes scanning the crowd of cats warmly. "May StarClan guide us until our next Gathering," she mewed, her eyes flickering toward the leaders near her before jumping down from the tree landing near Reedwhisker.

"That was quick," Seedpaw remarked as she got to her paws. "Rowanstar seemed a little… Edgy," she muttered rolling her eyes.

Lilypaw glanced toward the ShadowClan leader. "He thinks Tigerheart killed Blackstar," she mewed softly. "And I'm sure he knows that Tigerheart's gone to us."

"Why would he think that?" Seedpaw mewed, sounding curious. The ginger apprentice started to walk away with Lilypaw on her heels.

"He's got ThunderClan blood, and Tigerheart came to ThunderClan with Tawnypelt when Sol came to the Clans," she sighed. "Rowanstar _is_ Tigerheart's father, you know that right?" she mewed.

"That's where he gets his edginess," Seedpaw huffed as she jumped onto the log that led down to the mainland. "Maybe Rowanstar does think that, but maybe he doesn't. He doesn't _know _for sure."

"What's with all this talk of Rowanstar?" came the interested mew of Dewpaw from behind them.

"Just discussing how well he is for a leader of ShadowClan," Seedpaw promised, her eyes glittering as she told the lie. "What are you snooping around for?" she inquired looking back at the ShadowClan apprentice warily.

"Just interested," Dewpaw mewed before she disappeared into the crowd of cats behind them.

"ShadowClan," Seedpaw muttered rolling her eyes. "I will never understand them."

"And I doubt they will ever understand us," Lilypaw mewed, her eyes dancing in amusement.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the delay. My computer decided it didn't want to work... And then... I got sidetracked with Assassin's Creed (I'm in love with the game haha) Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. It was kind of hard to write because I've never written a Gathering scene before, and well... Never written about a ShadowClan cat before really. But I enjoyed it :D There'll be more updates soon *hopefully* Don't forget to review!


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